ROD HISTORY: Once upon a time... September 24, 1975

Rod Stewart reached number 1 in the UK singles chart 51 years ago today with "Sailing," a cover version of the Sutherland Brothers song from 1972.

Today—over five decades later—we talk about "Sailing" as one of the greatest songs of all time. This is probably mainly because the song evokes a certain image: the sea. A ship on the horizon, wind, vastness, and that feeling of being somewhere on the move.

I am sailing, I am sailing / Home again 'cross the sea

I am sailing, stormy waters / To be near you, to be free

"Sailing" became a worldwide anthem and is now an indispensable part of every Stewart concert. Anyone going to a Rod Stewart show expects the emotional finale on this evening, when the curtain falls to the last notes of "Sailing" and Sir Rod waves as he leaves the stage. The song's unique character didn't escape the notice of the BBC, which chose it as the theme song for the 1976 documentary "Sailor." The series followed the crew of the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal during an extended deployment. The focus was not only on their military duties but also on the daily lives of the men on board.

This series also gave "Sailing" a visual boost, propelling it back into the charts (reaching number 3) and remaining there for another 18 weeks.

"Sailing's" worldwide hit was rather accidental. Rod Stewart wasn't initially convinced about releasing the song as a single, preferring to use his own song "Three Time Loser." Ultimately, however, producer Tom Dowd prevailed, and the success of "Sailing" was unstoppable.

Rod described the whole process many years later in his autobiography: "The only thing that overshadowed these album sessions was that Alabama was a 'dry state' where alcohol was hard to come by. Steve, Duck, and I had a bottle of rum at the Holiday Inn where we were staying. We had to stretch it day by day, and the morning Tom called me at 10:00 to tell me to come and sing 'Sailing,' there wasn't a drop of alcohol left. I panicked. I'd never sung anything in the studio without a drink—let alone such an anthem. And I'd never sung that early in the morning, anything at all, anywhere. Six or seven takes later, I'd done it. Gavin Sutherland's 'Sailing' became another huge success for me—and a hit twice in the UK, first in 1975 and a year later when it was revived for the theme song of a BBC documentary series about life in the Navy. Of course, I, just as with "Maggie May," was vehemently opposed to releasing this track as the album's first single. I would have chosen "Three Time Loser" instead. And once again, I was amusingly proven completely wrong—and I'm only too happy to admit it.

"Sailing" reached number one in the charts in seven countries and re-entered the charts in 1976, 1978 (New Zealand), and 1987 (Belgium, Ireland, UK).